Evaluate the claim that personal identity is self- defined Essay

Your individuality is what makes you who you be and what makes you unique as an individual and different from separate people. Identities be non static but dynamic and constantly changing. A personal individuation is made up of some(prenominal) different aspects, and batch be outlined by culture (nationality, religion and gender) as hygienic as family and career. Your identity is defined by how you memorize yourself and as well by how you are seen by otherwises. It is part addn and part taken and in any case apprise be something we are born with. In some instances an identity may be something you are given and may not be by choice. I am going to look at what makes a personal identity and is it self-defined and made without the assistance of anyone else. I am also going to compare the opinion of the theoreticians Erik Erikson and Sigmund Freud and I will be development the case findings of the research project into worthy a get for the commencement ceremony term a nd more importantly the case of Silma and her experiences, this was a research computer program which included detailed interviews as well as observational research. on that point are numerous ways in which our Identity can throw, for type our bodies dislodge and how we look alters as we get older but our demeanor and our bodies can also be changed by choice for deterrent example vibrissa colour, cosmetic surgery etc. (chapter 4, Exploring Social Lives) Our identities also change by dint of practices and when there is an upset to our normal routines and we guide to establish new ones or learn new skills, this also has an impact on our identity. This is the case when practices function into routines and we no longer need to hypothesize about doing them as they establish second nature. Finally we also experience kind changes where our views on who we think we are is influenced by the opinions of other people and how they see us. We become who we are and modify ourselves t hrough the way others treat us and respond to us. This is witnessed when a woman becomes a go, she may be enured differently by her parents as a result of piteous to parenthood herself.This was the claim for theorist Erik Erikson who studied that our identity changes are influenced by past experiences, the moment-by-moment activities and relationships we lose daily. This is spanned oer a life date and although can happen at any time, Erikson defined 8 stages in which identity is transformed in unique ways, as transition was not a smooth process, these stages he called identity crises. These stages were seen as times when conflict was introduced, conflict is contending with happenings in everyday life that lolly life running as smoothly as before. Conflict is being faced with choices, feeling conf utilize and although he uses the example of passing from adolescence into maturity it could also mean becoming middle aged, old or moving into parenthood. (chapter 4, Exploring Socia l Lives) Everyone experiences conflicts and in turn experiencing conflicts make us who we are and give us an identityOne way our identity can change is through realisation, which is what it is called when we try on someone elses persona. We try on other peoples identity and see life through their eyes and empathise with how they felt at a certain time, for example when you become a mother you can empathise and understand how other mothers feel. This was the case with Liyanna, she used to look at pictures of her mother with her sis and the mother daughter relationship meant nothing to her, however now she is a mother herself she looks at the photo differently and can identify with the love and the perception her mother was feeling when the photo was taken. She says that now she looks at the photo and she knows on the dot what her mum was feeling, she sees her mother in a new spark and because of her own experiences can now put herself in her mothers shoes. She is now identifying with her mother.The theorist Billig looks at identification and associates it with groups of people and how they are attached by the common quality or interest that they share. Sigmund Freud also claims that identification is the expression of an emotional tie with another person, an identity can be borrowed from someone else. The theory suggests that there are two kinds of identification, swelling which is the content we give off and introjection which is the messages we take in. Both are done by chance and unconsciously to furnish ones identity. (chapter 4, Exploring Social Lives).All these theories can be O.K. up by the case study completed on branch time mothers and in particular Silmas case. Silmas identity begins to change with practices, she has had to learn a whole new routine which will need to adapt as her baby grows. She also has a new relationship to establish as mother and daughter with her new baby, the relationship with her economise and family will also change. Silma has also to deal with the conflict of becoming a new mother, this conflict between being the indulged eldest daughter to maternal quality and also between pleasing yourself and having to put your baby first are all aspects of defining her new identity.Silma is also seen differently not barely by her neighbours but also by her family and in particular her aunts and her sister. Silma feels she is treated with more respect by her aunts and is now welcomed into their group as a mother. This is a generational shift for Silma and where she once thought of her aunts as thudding who unaccompanied talked about babies she now finds this interesting and likes to stay around them and can actually relate to them and now sees herself more like them.Silma also starts to arrange differently and sees herself differently because people are treating her differently. Silma admits that she has left her wild age behind and become more mature and motherly and spends more time with her family . This has also had an effect on her choice of clothes and prior to becoming a mother Silma preferred to dupe jeans but now she is a mother her choice of clothing is now the traditional salwaar kameez, she refers to these clothes as normal and now feels less comfortable in jeans. Silma received several gifts of salwaar kameez for her birthday after becoming a mother which may have encouraged her decision.Silmas new identity has also caused conflict with her sister who now sees her as becoming like her aunts and gives Silma a hard time for being boring and because she prefers the aunts company. Silma has also taken on the identity as a mother and this is implemented in her concern for her younger sister and the way she behaves, she worries that by staying out late she may get smart but in actual fact this was the same way Silma used to behave priorto becoming a mother. Silmas sister makes grapheme to the fact that Silma used to be worse than me but Silma puts this down to her havi ng changed. Silma dialog about meeting up with old friends at McDonalds and although we cannot assume that she would wear the salwaar kameez this is a clear distinction of how Silma has changed and her new identity as a mother is the dominant one.We have looked at various theories on what makes up personal identity and it is clear that self- exposition on its own is not sufficient. Personal identity is made up through interacting with others and through projection and introjection, its a two way thing people see you differently so you behave differently. When we use identification it can only be done through another person to allow you to identify, this is not self-defined as you need another person to be able to do it. You need to put yourself in someone elses shoes and yourself definition shifts when you look at someone else. Also some identities are already defined by others and you are moved into this social category without choice, as was the case for Silma when she became a mother, this identity is social and it is defined by how a mother should behave. If we require others to create our identity then our personal identity cannot be self-defined.